Games of thrones season 4

[sparkytrypod]

well did any of you guys watch it??!


what ye think?!

it was unreal, cant wait until next sunday already!

[Nicene]

Good episode yeah!

[Giladis]

As a person who hasn't read the books yet I found it quite amusing.

[sparkytrypod]

As a person who hasn't read the books yet I found it quite amusing.

yeah, I have read as far as season 3 bookwise but have stopped now as I don't want to spoil the tv show, its just too good!

[Lord Anathir]

The Hound officially attained legendary status with one scene.

[Shannar, Sealord]

The Hound officially attained legendary status with one scene.

All I know is Martin needs to get moving on the books again, before he pulls a Robert Jordan on us.

[grantmepower]

The Hound officially attained legendary status with one scene.

All I know is Martin needs to get moving on the books again, before he pulls a Robert Jordan on us.

I agree! It always worries me when my fantasy authors don't look healthy

[sparkytrypod]

ya, Brandon sanderson did a passable job only on finishin the wheel of time. his first attempt was pretty poor.

+1 on the hound!

[Teledor]

Yes definitely enjoying the Arya, Daernerys, and Tyrion character arcs at the moment. Let's hope Tyrion gets out of this jam that seems to be appearing!

[John Rainbow]

Episode last night was pretty epic. I read the books quite some time ago though so I have to keep my mouth shut about the who, the what and the where...

[Teledor]

I'm tempted to read the books, actually bought them for my kindle, but I want to keep the show as awesome as it is. May wait until this season is done.

[Tahl]

I have mixed feelings, House Martel is my favorite house from the books.

But I am not sold on their outfits.

[Facade19]

I have to say though Oberyn has been casted well.

And of course Roose and Ramsay for President and Vice-President.

[Lord Anathir]

I hope Stannis sits on the thrown, his no bullshit attitude has won my support!

[Teledor]

.... and weekly Melisandre BBQs!

[Elros Amandil]

I went to high school with Peter Dinklage (the actor who plays Tyrion), and watching him in the episode "The Laws of Gods and Men" is one of the highlights of my life. The entire show is epic, but Peter still stands out for his brilliant acting and presence on screen.

[Asurion Whitestar]

I hope Stannis sits on the thrown, his no bullshit attitude has won my support!

What?!!

[Prince of Spires]

I hope Stannis sits on the thrown, his no bullshit attitude has won my support!

What?!!

Don't worry if you don't like stannis in that case. From what I can see, everyone who manages to sit on the throne (or rather, any one of them) ends up dead at some point. Usually in a horrible way...

Though I've mainly read the books and only watched season 1 (and a little bit of 2).

Rod

[Asurion Whitestar]

I think there'll be a lot of bloodshed before Westeros is at a state of peace.
Dani and (the song of ice and fire) I would say they're the only true claims to the throne.
Even though their ancestor stole the crown through conquering.

[Gondarion]

There were still some of the same problems the show has always had, but overall season 4 was a big jump forward in quality. Adapting the next books will, apparently, be an entirely different challenge. I think it might do the show well to have so much material to fit in from the novels that the showrunners no longer have an excuse to add their own made-up scenes, as those are mostly really bad. In one episode, they had a dying man appear to criticize Fox News. Umm, I can watch the Daily Show for that, guys. Stick to the story.

Peter Dinklage reached a whole new level of awesome this season. I actually disliked his performance in the 1st season, largely because of his dreadful attempt at a posh accent combined poorly with his wisecracking. Since then, we've seen more of compassionate, angry, wounded Tyrion. Which is all gold. My favorite characters are Arya and Ser davos. Arya is such a great and vivid character, played by the best child actor I've ever seen (although she is getting older now). Ser Davos is such a wonderful character, and I in part love him because he is the counterpoint to the character that, to me, is the most loathsome and unpleasant in the series (at least since Craster). Which in Game of Thrones is really saying something. Unfortunately/fortunately, the show will have to soldier on without Jack Gleeson's King Joffrey, damn he was memorable!

[Gandalf_82]

I have seen every episode a few times but I was loathe to start watching them. My missus, knowing I loved the books thought it was a good idea to get me the first season on Blu Ray for Christmas a while back so I "grudgingly" gave them a try. Only took a couple of episodes to get me hooked. I am very much a guy who thinks TV shows or movies never do justice to a good book and sure, there are failings in GoT's, bits skipped and made up etc, but I think they have done a decent job of capturing the essence of the books. So big thumbs up from me.

That being said, if anyone hasnt read the books (even if you've seen the show) I cannot recommend them highly enough. Truly epic in scope and I really like Martin's style. I actually read the first 3 way back around 2000, then reread them and 4 and 5 a year or two back. Its just annoying having to wait for the last 2, as someone said he really needs to get his backside in gear before he does a Jordan on us!

[Gondarion]

I have seen every episode a few times but I was loathe to start watching them. My missus, knowing I loved the books thought it was a good idea to get me the first season on Blu Ray for Christmas a while back so I "grudgingly" gave them a try. Only took a couple of episodes to get me hooked. I am very much a guy who thinks TV shows or movies never do justice to a good book and sure, there are failings in GoT's, bits skipped and made up etc, but I think they have done a decent job of capturing the essence of the books. So big thumbs up from me.

That being said, if anyone hasnt read the books (even if you've seen the show) I cannot recommend them highly enough. Truly epic in scope and I really like Martin's style. I actually read the first 3 way back around 2000, then reread them and 4 and 5 a year or two back. Its just annoying having to wait for the last 2, as someone said he really needs to get his backside in gear before he does a Jordan on us!

There are many wonderful qualities in the series to be sure. But there are...other things too. As you are a fan of the books, I'm curious what you think of the influence of the show-runners, in particular the additions made. I'll leave out the mostly unnecessary (and often unpleasant) sex scenes, which were apparently mandated by the network. I speak more of the existential-sounding dialogue/scenes, the repartee between Littlefinger and Varys, and the downplaying of the fantastic elements in places in favor of commentaries on religion etc. These elements are, to me, utter blather, the kind of thing that might come out of a bunch of 18-year old horror fans who are taking a philosophy course. The nadir to me came when Littlefinger and Varys had what seemed like an entire conversation about Varys' missing balls. It is supposed to be a conflict between agents of chaos vs order and this is what you've come up with?

But then there is the amazing Maisie Williams as Arya, and Jack Gleeson and Sophie Turner were nearly as good. Is it just me or have those three kids been about the strongest elements on the series? And that is saying something with how good Peter Dinklage and Charles Dance were. It seemed to me that the quality of the show went up a few notches whenever Tywin Lannister was there. I know it wasn't canon, but the scenes with him and Arya have been amongst my favorites. I also love any scene with Ser Davos, just a lovely character. Game of Thrones is also about as visually impressive as any TV show has ever been, it really is somewhere between TV and movies in its look and scale.

My approach to watching the show has been to disregard the things I dislike and just focus on the stuff I like. I'd imagine as a fan of the novels you've felt the need to do so at times. How do you think they should approach things going forward?

[Gandalf_82]

You ask some very good questions and make some well structured points mate! As a huge fan of the books I obviously find it very annoying whenever they diverge from them and add in bits that are to me unnecessary, your example of the Varys and Baelish and that nonsense conversation is a good one - it just isnt true to what Martin wrote. But this is how I see it...

They're working to a (large) budget and TV (and movie) is a results driven business. I therefore accept and try to embrace these things, they obviously do it for a reason to appeal to a wider audience and if that's what they deem necessary to get those viewing figures in then so be it. Whilst I would love them to produce a "purer" show that stays true to Martin's work I would imagine that would make it much harder and/or less fun to follow to those who hadn't read the books (Although we would love it) and ratings would be lower as a result. In turn that could mean they cut the budgets or even the show entirely...

So I try to take it with a pinch of salt at times and as you say embrace the bits I do like. One thing I do know is that my missus, her dad and brothers aren't big readers and certainly not of fantasy books. There's no way they'd read them but through me watching it they've all become hooked on the show. So now when the show is on its become a family thing that we all watch it at ours, I cook and we make a family evening of it type thing. Then invariably afterwards we sit and discuss it and I help to fill in the blanks and answer questions with my knowledge on the books (which in turn I think increases their enjoyment of it all). I love that about the show, I've read so many books that I love and can only discuss with one or two friends who are fantasy readers so to have my missus whooping with joy when a nasty gets killed, or shouting in despair when a good guy gets it for example I just love.

I think in the main their casting has been fantastic. I couldn't believe it when I found out for example that the hound once played that muppet in "Hot Fuzz", he's perfect for the part. I agree with the ones you mention and many more. I think in the main between the scripts and the acting that they do a great job of capturing the essence of the characters.

What do I want to see from here? I just hope they maintain the levels they've set so far whilst staying true to the main plot line. The one thing I would hate is for Martin to adapt the last two novels to suit the show better. I want him to finish the series in style to the same level of detail, scope and intricacy he's produced so far. As long as the shows then have a good stab at following that I'll be happy.

[Gondarion]

I totally get where you're coming from as far as sharing something with others and savoring their response, helping them fill in the blanks etc. It is a very nice thing. Interesting that you mentioned The Hound, he was excellently portrayed. I have a question for you on that front: Did you think the added scenes with Arya and The Hound made the ending of the 4th season make less sense? It seemed they made a point of showing Arya develop some sympathy for the hound, which made her leaving him to bleed out not make sense to me.

What do I want to see from here? I just hope they maintain the levels they've set so far whilst staying true to the main plot line. The one thing I would hate is for Martin to adapt the last two novels to suit the show better. I want him to finish the series in style to the same level of detail, scope and intricacy he's produced so far. As long as the shows then have a good stab at following that I'll be happy.

Same here. No matter what the showrunners do right or wrong, they're not going to have the level of inventiveness of George RR Martin, who in my view particularly excels at devising convoluted plots which are both unpredictable and end up making sense. I have read he has had many criticisms of details within the show, so I think he wants to write it his way, but he can't help but be influenced a little by what he sees, especially with the portrayals of certain characters. Fortunately, the cast is probably the most consistent element on the show. The challenge now will be (I'm guessing?) having to compress elements of book 4, seeing as there is still some of book 3 at the wall that hasn't been done.